Zihan Wu / Ink Still Wet 2025
«May we introduce you …?»Published: 21 August 2025
Get to know Zihan Wu one of the five participants from this year's Ink Still Wet workshop, which Composer in Residence Fabián Panisello will lead.
«By participating in Ink Still Wet, I hope to refine my abilities to communicate effectively with an orchestra not only as a composer but also as a conductor. The workshop’s structure—from score preparation and refinement to rehearsal and final concert—would be invaluable for me. Working closely with Maestro Fabián Panisello would further enhance my technical and expressive skills, preparing me to make precise, impactful decisions that bring my music to life in a way that resonates with audiences.»
Zihan Wu's Selection
«The pieces on this playlist mostly reflect the pianist side of my musical journey. Each work has captured and shaped my musical experiences at different ages, bringing back vivid scenes and moments of inspiration, growth, struggle, and reflection. Together, they evoke tears, joy, confusion, and a sense of searching for something unreached and unspoken. The time I spent with these pieces varied, but through learning, practicing, polishing, and performing, something clicks in my mind and ear. Although these works do not represent my compositional language, the memories they hold are invaluable, subconsciously encouraging and giving me the strength to continue my creative path.»
«Lycoris Reflection» for orchestra (2025)
World premiere«The piece I composed for Ink Still Wet, Lycoris Reflection, is the third time I have explored the theme of Lycoris, a flower tied to ancient Chinese mysticism concerning life, death, and the beyond in an imaginary underworld realm. Through experimenting with musical narratives, I sought ways to approach the unknown and nonexistent. Reflecting on this process, the material gradually opened my imagination and became, in turn, a personal reflection on the search for spiritual meaning.»
Biography
Zihan Wu (b.2001) is a Chinese composer and pianist. Her music is often praised for her sophisticated and imaginative crafts of personal soundscapes.
She has collaborated with ensembles including Meitar Ensemble, Divertimento Ensemble, JACK Quartet, Fabrik Quartet, Ensemble Court-Circuit, Improta Ensemble, Yale Philharmonia, Eastman Musica Nova Ensemble, Eastman School Symphony Orchestra, Ossia New Music Ensemble, and among others with performances across the North America, Europe, and Asia. Her works have been featured in the 2024 Rondò Season in Milan and CEME Festival, and will be programmed for the 2025 ECLAT Festival in Stuttgart. She has been selected as a composition fellow at festivals including DeGaetano Composition Institute by the Orchestra of St. Luke’s, Aspen International Music Festival, Barcelona Modern International Composition Workshop, International Workshop for Young Composers, Bowdoin International Music Festival, New Music On the Point, and Bei-jing International Composition Workshop.
Her works have won several prizes including 1st prize in the 10th Matan Givol International Com-posers Competition; winner of 1st Call for Scores - Biennale “Annamaria Strano”; 1st prize in the MaestrosVision Award International Composition Competition; 1st prize in the 9th Beijing Interna-tional Composition Workshop; 3rd prize in the Improta Ensemble Composition Competition, East-man Student Composition Award, and among others.
Currently based in New Haven, CT, Zihan is pursuing her Master of Music in composition at Yale School of Music, studying with Martin Bresnick, Aaron Jay Kernis, Katherine Balch, and Chris-topher Theofanidis. She completed her BM degree at Eastman School of Music, double majoring in composition and piano, after graduating from Music Middle School Affiliated to the Shanghai Con-servatory of Music. She has previously studied with Carlos Sanchez-Gutierrez, Ricardo Zohn-Muldoon, Robert Morris, David Liptak, Matthew Barber, and Qing Shao, and received guidance from composers such as Hèctor Parra, Daniel D’adamo, Philippe Leroux, Sarah Nemstov, Mauro Lanza, among others outside the school. Her piano teachers include Douglas Humpherys, Vincent Lenti, Melvin Chen, and Xiangjun Yu.
Ink Still Wet
Closing ConcertTonkunstler Orchestra · Participants of the composer conductor workshop Ink Still Wet · Alexander Moore · Fabián Panisello
PANISELLO / PARTICIPANTS OF THE COMPOSER CONDUCTOR WORKSHOP